The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Schizachyrium scoparium hereinafter referred to by the varietal domination ‘Seasons in the Sun’.
The new Schizachyrium is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventors in Griffin, Ga. The objective of the Schizachyrium breeding program is to produce a tough and adaptable drought-tolerant plant with commercial value. This cultivar has significant commercial and home gardener appeal with its attractive foliage and low maintenance requirements. These and other qualities are enumerated herein.
Pedigree and history: In 2006, thirty-seven accessions (number of plants per accession ranged from one to 51 depending upon the germination of individual accessions) of Schizachyrium scoparium were germinated and transplanted into field plots in Griffin, Ga. After a two-year evaluation period, seeds from open pollination within accessions were collected and sown in 2008, yielding 368 seedlings. The 368 seedlings were evaluated in containers in a screenhouse in Griffin, Ga. A seedling was selected for further evaluation and labeled ‘B20-10’. In 2010, this selected plant was asexually propagated by root division in Griffin, Ga., and subsequently planted into field plots in Griffin and Blairsville, Ga. in 2011. The new variety ‘B20-10’, now named ‘Seasons in the Sun’, has been tested since 2011 in Griffin and Blairsville, Ga.